Two tools keep your customer base complete and clean: Merge combines duplicate records, and Customer Import brings customers in from files and marketplaces.
Merging duplicates
Guest checkouts create a fresh record each time, so one real person often has several records. To combine them:
- On Manage Customers, tick the checkboxes on the duplicate rows (searching by the shared email first makes this quick).
- Choose Merge Customers and pick which record survives.
- Review the preview: it shows exactly what will be combined (orders, sales history, wants, wishlists, list subscriptions), then confirm.
The surviving record keeps its own details, fills any blanks from the others, and inherits all their history. The duplicates are removed.
Importing customers
Customer Import (from the Manage Customers gear menu) accepts three sources:
- A CSV file in the provided template, with your choice of how to treat existing matches: skip them, fill in their blanks, or overwrite.
- Marketplace buyers: pull the customers from your marketplace sales into your customer base, so repeat marketplace buyers become people you can see and serve.
- A wants CSV: import customer want lists in bulk, matched to customers by email.